On December 2, 2008, a hearing was convened regarding allegations that you violated the following University regulations (p. 81-90, Spartan Life):

GSR-3.04 No student shall represent a group falsely or use the resources of a group without proper authorization.

GSR-4.05 No student shall use any University facility, equipment, or materials except for their authorized purposes.

Network Acceptable Use Policy

You were present at the open hearing, were accompanied by counsel, and presented 2 witnesses. The complainant, Randall Hall, was present, was not accompanied by counsel, and presented no witnesses.

At the hearing, you indicated that you denied the allegation(s), and the board did not rule on any special motions or requests.

With respect to GSR-3.04, the regulation is designed to protect student organizations from unauthorized usage of its resources. There is nothing in the allegation itself that suggest that your actions were on behalf of ASMSU or any other organization. In addition, your own statement indicated that you were acting as an individual student. Therefore, the board found you not responsible.

With respect to the “Acceptable Use Policy”, Article IV 1.4 prohibits the disruption or obstruction of any computing system as protected by regulation, policy, or administrative ruling. According to the complainant, your use violated protections outlined in MSU’s “Guidelines Regarding Bulk E-mailing by Internal Users of MSUnet”. The policy outlined prohibits bulk messages that are personal in nature, do not meet the criteria for acceptable cross-University mailing, and lack prior authorization from a Major Administrative Unit. Your e-mail was clearly bulk in nature as it had hundreds of recipients. Secondly, it was admittedly personal in nature, and not on behalf of any organization or administrative unit. Thirdly, your message did not meet the criteria for broad cross-University mailing and had not received prior authorization. Therefore, the board finds you responsible for violating the “Acceptable Use Policy”.

With respect to GSR-4.05, the MSU Network is considered a University facility. Therefore, your unauthorized use of this facility constitutes a violation and you have been found responsible as well.

As a result, you have received a Warning.

You have the right to appeal this decision to the University Student Appeals Board. Should you choose to appeal, you must file your reasons in writing. Appeals must be received at 101 Student Services no later than 5 pm, three (3) university class days from the date of this letter. Please give special attention to the attachments/enclosures, as they will guide you through the appeals process. If you have difficulty accessing any of this information, or simply have some questions, do not hesitate to contact me.